Systems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture to provide guest access

ABSTRACT

An example method includes displaying a playback queue for a media playback system to a first and second controller via a first user interface associated with the first controller and a second user interface associated with the second controller, the first controller granted a first access to the system and the second controller granted a second access to the system, the first controller displaying a subset of information available to the second controller. The example method includes displaying a plurality of controls for the system via the second user interface of the second controller, the controls associated with the second access. The example method includes displaying a subset of the controls via the first user interface, the subset including at least one control available via the second controller and associated with the first access. The example method includes facilitating control via the first user interface according to the first access.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to, as a continuation-in-partof, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/533,105, filed on Jun. 26, 2012,entitled “Systems, Methods, Apparatus, and Articles of Manufacture toProvide a Crowd-Sourced Playlist with Guest Access,” and U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/278,473, filed on Apr. 3, 2006, entitled “Systemand Method for Controlling Devices to Selectively FacilitateSynchronization of Operations Thereamong,” which claims priority as acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/816,217,filed on Apr. 1, 2004, and entitled “System and Method for SynchronizingOperations Among a Plurality of Independently Clocked Digital DataProcessing Devices,” which claims the benefit of priority to U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/755,751, entitled “System and Methodfor Controlling Devices”, filed on Dec. 31, 2005, each which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tosystems, products, features, services, and other items directed to mediaplayback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Technological advancements have increased the accessibility of musiccontent, as well as other types of media, such as television content,movies, and interactive content. For example, a user can access audio,video, or both audio and video content over the Internet through anonline store, an Internet radio station, a music service, a movieservice, and so on, in addition to the more traditional avenues ofaccessing audio and video content. Demand for audio, video, and bothaudio and video content inside and outside of the home continues toincrease.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologyare better understood with regard to the following description, appendedclaims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an illustration of an example system in which embodimentsof the methods and apparatus disclosed herein can be implemented;

FIG. 2A shows an illustration of an example zone player having abuilt-in amplifier and speakers;

FIG. 2B shows an illustration of an example zone player having abuilt-in amplifier and connected to external speakers;

FIG. 2C shows an illustration of an example zone player connected to anA/V receiver and speakers;

FIG. 3 shows an illustration of an example controller;

FIG. 4 shows an internal functional block diagram of an example zoneplayer;

FIG. 5 shows an internal functional block diagram of an examplecontroller;

FIG. 6 depicts an example shared listening zone group including multiplezones in which multiple users, via multiple controllers can controlmusic played in the zone group via a plurality of media playbackdevices;

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram of an example method to implement aparty playlist mode in a media playback system;

FIG. 8 illustrates a flow diagram of an example method to facilitateaddition of content to a party playlist.

FIGS. 9-15 illustrate example user interfaces facilitating contentselection, playback and configuration in a party playlist mode.

In addition, the drawings are for the purpose of illustrating exampleembodiments, but it is understood that the present disclosure is notlimited to the arrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview

Listening to audio content out loud can be a social activity thatinvolves family, friends, or both. Audio content may include, forinstance, music, talk radio, books, audio from television, and otheraudible material. For example, in a household, people may play music outloud at parties and other social gatherings. In such an environment,people may wish to play the music in one listening zone or multiplelistening zones simultaneously, such that the music in each listeningzone may be synchronized, without audible echoes or glitches. Such anexperience may be further enriched when people, for example, browseaudio sources, add a music track to a playback queue, learn more about amusic track (such as track title or track artists), or view what musictrack is next in the playback queue.

Listening to audio content out loud can also be an individualexperience. For example, an individual may play music out loud forthemselves in the morning before work, in the evening during dinner, orat other times throughout the day at home, work, or on the road. Forthese individual experiences, the individual may choose to either useheadphones, or limit the out loud playback of audio content to a singlezone or area.

Discovery of audio can also be an important element of the experience.By way of illustration, discovery may involve friends sharing theirlatest favorite new song, artist, or playlist with each other. In somecases, discovery may involve browsing music magazines and periodicalsthat regularly review the latest releases. In addition, some onlinemusic services, radio stations, and disc jockeys are also means forpeople to share and discover new music or audio.

Example systems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacturedisclosed herein provide for configuration of a playback system in arestricted access mode (e.g., a party playlist mode) in which authorizedor other participating users can access and interact with a certainspecified set of content and system function. For example, an authorizeduser can view a library of available content for playback and selectcontent to be added to the playlist (e.g., perhaps subject to approvalof the host/moderator and/or a vote of other participants). Examplesystems and methods disclosed and described herein may be advantageouslyused to provide improved usability and configurability for variedplayback of media content (e.g., audio and/or video) in a networkenvironment.

Many other embodiments are provided and described herein.

II. An Example Operating Environment

Referring now to the drawings, in which like numerals can refer to likeparts throughout the figures, FIG. 1 shows an example system 100 inwhich one or more embodiments disclosed herein can be practiced orimplemented.

By way of illustration, system 100 represents a home presentlyconfigured with multiple zones, though the home could have beenconfigured with only one zone. Each zone in the home, for example, mayrepresent a different room or space, such as an office, bathroom,bedroom, kitchen, dining room, family room, home theater room, utilityor laundry room, and patio. A single zone might also include multiplerooms if so configured. One or more of zone players 102-124 are shown ineach respective zone of the home. A zone player 102-124, also referredto as a playback device, multimedia unit, speaker, player, and so on,provides audio, video, and/or audiovisual output. Controller 130provides control to system 100. Controller 130 may be fixed to a zone,or alternatively, mobile such that it can be moved about the zones.System 100 may also include more than one controller 130. System 100illustrates an example whole house audio system, though it is understoodthat the technology described herein is not limited to its particularplace of application or to an expansive system like a whole house audiosystem 100 of FIG. 1.

a. Example Zone Players

FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C show example types of zone players. Zone players200, 202, and 204 of FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C, respectively, can correspondto any of the zone players 102-124 of FIG. 1, for example. In someembodiments, audio is reproduced using only a single zone player, suchas by a full-range player. In some embodiments, audio is reproducedusing two or more zone players, such as by using a combination offull-range players or a combination of full-range and specializedplayers. In some embodiments, zone players 200-204 may also be referredto as a “smart speaker,” because they contain processing capabilitiesbeyond the reproduction of audio, more of which is described below.

FIG. 2A illustrates zone player 200 that includes sound producingequipment 208 capable of reproducing full-range sound. The sound maycome from an audio signal that is received and processed by zone player200 over a wired or wireless data network. Sound producing equipment 208includes one or more built-in amplifiers and one or more speakers. Abuilt-in amplifier is described more below with respect to FIG. 4. Aspeaker or acoustic transducer can include, for example, any of atweeter, a mid-range driver, a low-range driver, and a subwoofer. Insome embodiments, zone player 200 can be statically or dynamicallyconfigured to play stereophonic audio, monaural audio, or both. In someembodiments, zone player 200 is configured to reproduce a subset offull-range sound, such as when zone player 200 is grouped with otherzone players to play stereophonic audio, monaural audio, and/or surroundaudio or when the audio content received by zone player 200 is less thanfull-range.

FIG. 2B illustrates zone player 202 that includes a built-in amplifierto power a set of detached speakers 210. A detached speaker can include,for example, any type of loudspeaker. Zone player 202 may be configuredto power one, two, or more separate loudspeakers. Zone player 202 may beconfigured to communicate an audio signal (e.g., right and left channelaudio or more channels depending on its configuration) to the detachedspeakers 210 via a wired path.

FIG. 2C illustrates zone player 204 that does not include a built-inamplifier, but is configured to communicate an audio signal, receivedover a data network, to an audio (or “audio/video”) receiver 214 withbuilt-in amplification.

Referring back to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, one, some, or all of thezone players 102 to 124 can retrieve audio directly from a source. Forexample, a zone player may contain a playlist or queue of audio items tobe played (also referred to herein as a “playback queue”). Each item inthe queue may comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI) or some otheridentifier. The URI or identifier can point the zone player to the audiosource. The source might be found on the Internet (e.g., the cloud),locally from another device over data network 128, the controller 130,stored on the zone player itself, or from an audio source communicatingdirectly to the zone player. In some embodiments, the zone player canreproduce the audio itself, send it to another zone player forreproduction, or both where the audio is played by the zone player andone or more additional zone players in synchrony. In some embodiments,the zone player can play a first audio content (or not play at all),while sending a second, different audio content to another zoneplayer(s) for reproduction.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif. presentlyoffers for sale zone players referred to as a “PLAY:5,” “PLAY:3,”“CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any other past, present, and/orfuture zone players can additionally or alternatively be used toimplement the zone players of example embodiments disclosed herein.Additionally, it is understood that a zone player is not limited to theparticular examples illustrated in FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C or to the SONOSproduct offerings. For example, a zone player may include a wired orwireless headphone. In yet another example, a zone player might includea sound bar for television. In yet another example, a zone player caninclude or interact with a docking station for an Apple IPOD™ or similardevice.

b. Example Controllers

FIG. 3 illustrates an example wireless controller 300 in docking station302. By way of illustration, controller 300 can correspond tocontrolling device 130 of FIG. 1. Docking station 302, if provided, maybe used to charge a battery of controller 300. In some embodiments,controller 300 is provided with a touch screen 304 that allows a user tointeract through touch with the controller 300, for example, to retrieveand navigate a playlist of audio items, control operations of one ormore zone players, and provide overall control of the systemconfiguration 100. In certain embodiments, any number of controllers canbe used to control the system configuration 100. In some embodiments,there can be a limit set on the number of controllers that can controlthe system configuration 100. The controllers might be wireless likewireless controller 300 or wired to data network 128.

In some embodiments, if more than one controller is used in system 100,then each controller may be coordinated to display common content, andmay all be dynamically updated to indicate changes made from a singlecontroller. Coordination can occur, for instance, by a controllerperiodically requesting state information directly or indirectly fromone or more zone players; the state information may provide informationabout system 100, such as current zone group configuration, what isplaying in one or more zones, volume levels, and other items ofinterest. The state information may be passed around on data network 128between zone players (and controllers, if so desired) as needed or asoften as programmed.

In addition, an application running on any network-enabled portabledevice, such as an IPHONE™, IPAD™, ANDROID™ powered phone, or any othersmart phone or network-enabled device can be used as controller 130. Anapplication running on a laptop or desktop personal computer (PC) orMAC™ can also be used as controller 130. Such controllers may connect tosystem 100 through an interface with data network 128, a zone player, awireless router, or using some other configured connection path. Examplecontrollers offered by SONOS, Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif. include a“Controller 200,” “SONOS® CONTROL,” “SONOS® Controller for IPHONE™,”“SONOS® Controller for IPAD™,” “SONOS® Controller for ANDROID™, “SONOS®Controller for MAC or PC.”

c. Example Data Connection

Zone players 102 to 124 of FIG. 1 are coupled directly or indirectly toa data network, such as data network 128. Controller 130 may also becoupled directly or indirectly to data network 128 or individual zoneplayers. Data network 128 is represented by an octagon in the figure tostand out from other representative components. While data network 128is shown in a single location, it is understood that such a network isdistributed in and around system 100. Particularly, data network 128 canbe a wired network, a wireless network, or a combination of both wiredand wireless networks. In some embodiments, one or more of the zoneplayers 102-124 are wirelessly coupled to data network 128 based on aproprietary mesh network. In some embodiments, one or more of the zoneplayers 102-124 are wirelessly coupled to data network 128 using anon-mesh topology. In some embodiments, one or more of the zone players102-124 are coupled via a wire to data network 128 using Ethernet orsimilar technology. In addition to the one or more zone players 102-124connecting to data network 128, data network 128 can further allowaccess to a wide area network, such as the Internet.

In some embodiments, connecting any of the zone players 102-124, or someother connecting device, to a broadband router, can create data network128. Other zone players 102-124 can then be added wired or wirelessly tothe data network 128. For example, a zone player (e.g., any of zoneplayers 102-124) can be added to the system configuration 100 by simplypressing a button on the zone player itself (or perform some otheraction), which enables a connection to be made to data network 128. Thebroadband router can be connected to an Internet Service Provider (ISP),for example. The broadband router can be used to form another datanetwork within the system configuration 100, which can be used in otherapplications (e.g., web surfing). Data network 128 can also be used inother applications, if so programmed. An example, second network mayimplement SonosNet protocol, developed by SONOS, Inc. of Santa Barbara.Sonsonate represents a secure, AES-encrypted, peer-to-peer wireless meshnetwork. Alternatively, in certain embodiments, the data network 128 isthe same network, such as a traditional wired or wireless network, usedfor other applications in the household.

d. Example Zone Configurations

A particular zone can contain one or more zone players. For example, thefamily room of FIG. 1 contains two zone players 106 and 108, while thekitchen is shown with one zone player 102. In another example, the hometheater room contains additional zone players to play audio from a 5.1channel or greater audio source (e.g., a movie encoded with 5.1 orgreater audio channels). In some embodiments, one can position a zoneplayer in a room or space and assign the zone player to a new orexisting zone via controller 130. As such, zones may be created,combined with another zone, removed, and given a specific name (e.g.,“Kitchen”), if so desired and programmed to do so with controller 130.Moreover, in some embodiments, zone configurations may be dynamicallychanged even after being configured using controller 130 or some othermechanism.

In some embodiments, if a zone contains two or more zone players, suchas the two zone players 106 and 108 in the family room, then the twozone players 106 and 108 can be configured to play the same audio sourcein synchrony, or the two zone players 106 and 108 can be paired,allowing the separate audio channels to be played by different players,for example. In other words, the stereo effects of a sound can bereproduced or enhanced through the two zone players 106 and 108, one forthe left sound and the other for the right sound. In certainembodiments, paired zone players (also referred to as “bonded zoneplayers”) can play audio in synchrony with other zone players in thesame or different zones.

In some embodiments, two or more zone players can be sonicallyconsolidated to form a single, consolidated zone player. A consolidatedzone player (though made up of multiple, separate devices) can beconfigured to process and reproduce sound differently than anunconsolidated zone player or zone players that are paired, because aconsolidated zone player will have additional speaker drivers from whichsound can be passed. The consolidated zone player can further be pairedwith a single zone player or yet another consolidated zone player. Eachplayback device of a consolidated playback device can be set in aconsolidated mode, for example.

According to some embodiments, one can continue to do any of: group,consolidate, and pair zone players, for example, until a desiredconfiguration is complete. The actions of grouping, consolidation, andpairing are preferably performed through a control interface, such asusing controller 130, and not by physically connecting and re-connectingspeaker wire, for example, to individual, discrete speakers to createdifferent configurations. As such, certain embodiments described hereinprovide a more flexible and dynamic platform through which soundreproduction can be offered to the end-user.

e. Example Audio Sources

In some embodiments, each zone can play from the same audio source asanother zone or each zone can play from a different audio source. Forexample, someone can be grilling on the patio and listening to jazzmusic via zone player 124, while someone is preparing food in thekitchen and listening to classical music via zone player 102. Further,someone can be in the office listening to the same jazz music via zoneplayer 110 that is playing on the patio via zone player 124. In someembodiments, the jazz music played via zone players 110 and 124 isplayed in synchrony. Synchronizing playback amongst zones allows forsomeone to pass through zones while seamlessly (or substantiallyseamlessly) listening to the audio. Further, zones can be put into a“party mode” such that all associated zones will play audio insynchrony.

Sources of audio content to be played by zone players 102-124 arenumerous. In some embodiments, music on a zone player itself may beaccessed and a played. In some embodiments, music from a personallibrary stored on a computer or networked-attached storage (NAS) may beaccessed via the data network 128 and played. In some embodiments,Internet radio stations, shows, and podcasts can be accessed via thedata network 128. Music or cloud services that let a user stream and/ordownload music and audio content can be accessed via the data network128. Further, music can be obtained from traditional sources, such as aturntable or CD player, via a line-in connection to a zone player, forexample. Audio content can also be accessed using a different protocol,such as AIRPLAY™, which is a wireless technology by Apple, Inc., forexample. Audio content received from one or more sources can be sharedamongst the zone players 102 to 124 via data network 128 and/orcontroller 130. The above-disclosed sources of audio content arereferred to herein as network-based audio information sources. However,network-based audio information sources are not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the example home theater zone players 116, 118, 120are coupled to an audio information source such as a television 132. Insome examples, the television 132 is used as a source of audio for thehome theater zone players 116, 118, 120, while in other examples audioinformation from the television 132 can be shared with any of the zoneplayers 102-124 in the audio system 100.

III. Zone Players

Referring now to FIG. 4, there is shown an example block diagram of azone player 400 in accordance with an embodiment. Zone player 400includes a network interface 402, a processor 408, a memory 410, anaudio processing component 412, one or more modules 414, an audioamplifier 416, and a speaker unit 418 coupled to the audio amplifier416. FIG. 2A shows an example illustration of such a zone player. Othertypes of zone players may not include the speaker unit 418 (e.g., suchas shown in FIG. 2B) or the audio amplifier 416 (e.g., such as shown inFIG. 2C). Further, it is contemplated that the zone player 400 can beintegrated into another component. For example, the zone player 400could be constructed as part of a television, lighting, or some otherdevice for indoor or outdoor use.

In some embodiments, network interface 402 facilitates a data flowbetween zone player 400 and other devices on a data network 128. In someembodiments, in addition to getting audio from another zone player ordevice on data network 128, zone player 400 may access audio directlyfrom the audio source, such as over a wide area network or on the localnetwork. In some embodiments, the network interface 402 can furtherhandle the address part of each packet so that it gets to the rightdestination or intercepts packets destined for the zone player 400.Accordingly, in certain embodiments, each of the packets includes anInternet Protocol (IP)-based source address as well as an IP-baseddestination address.

In some embodiments, network interface 402 can include one or both of awireless interface 404 and a wired interface 406. The wireless interface404, also referred to as a radio frequency (RF) interface, providesnetwork interface functions for the zone player 400 to wirelesslycommunicate with other devices (e.g., other zone player(s), speaker(s),receiver(s), component(s) associated with the data network 128, and soon) in accordance with a communication protocol (e.g., any wirelessstandard including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, or 802.15).Wireless interface 404 may include one or more radios. To receivewireless signals and to provide the wireless signals to the wirelessinterface 404 and to transmit wireless signals, the zone player 400includes one or more antennas 420. The wired interface 406 providesnetwork interface functions for the zone player 400 to communicate overa wire with other devices in accordance with a communication protocol(e.g., IEEE 802.3). In some embodiments, a zone player includes both ofthe interfaces 404 and 406. In some embodiments, a zone player 400includes only the wireless interface 404 or the wired interface 406.

In some embodiments, the processor 408 is a clock-driven electronicdevice that is configured to process input data according toinstructions stored in memory 410. The memory 410 is data storage thatcan be loaded with one or more software module(s) 414, which can beexecuted by the processor 408 to achieve certain tasks. In theillustrated embodiment, the memory 410 is a tangible machine-readablemedium storing instructions that can be executed by the processor 408.In some embodiments, a task might be for the zone player 400 to retrieveaudio data from another zone player or a device on a network (e.g.,using a uniform resource locator (URL) or some other identifier). Insome embodiments, a task may be for the zone player 400 to send audiodata to another zone player or device on a network. In some embodiments,a task may be for the zone player 400 to synchronize playback of audiowith one or more additional zone players. In some embodiments, a taskmay be to pair the zone player 400 with one or more zone players tocreate a multi-channel audio environment. Additional or alternativetasks can be achieved via the one or more software module(s) 414 and theprocessor 408.

The audio processing component 412 can include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor, and so on. Insome embodiments, the audio processing component 412 may be part ofprocessor 408. In some embodiments, the audio that is retrieved via thenetwork interface 402 is processed and/or intentionally altered by theaudio processing component 412. Further, the audio processing component412 can produce analog audio signals. The processed analog audio signalsare then provided to the audio amplifier 416 for play back throughspeakers 418. In addition, the audio processing component 412 caninclude circuitry to process analog or digital signals as inputs to playfrom zone player 400, send to another zone player on a network, or bothplay and send to another zone player on the network. An example inputincludes a line-in connection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audioline-in connection).

The audio amplifier 416 is a device(s) that amplifies audio signals to alevel for driving one or more speakers 418. The one or more speakers 418can include an individual transducer (e.g., a “driver”) or a completespeaker system that includes an enclosure including one or more drivers.A particular driver can be a subwoofer (e.g., for low frequencies), amid-range driver (e.g., for middle frequencies), and a tweeter (e.g.,for high frequencies), for example. An enclosure can be sealed orported, for example. Each transducer may be driven by its own individualamplifier.

A commercial example, presently known as the PLAY:5, is a zone playerwith a built-in amplifier and speakers that is capable of retrievingaudio directly from the source, such as on the Internet or on the localnetwork, for example. In particular, the PLAY:5 is a five-amp,five-driver speaker system that includes two tweeters, two mid-rangedrivers, and one woofer. When playing audio content via the PLAY:5, theleft audio data of a track is sent out of the left tweeter and leftmid-range driver, the right audio data of a track is sent out of theright tweeter and the right mid-range driver, and mono bass is sent outof the subwoofer. Further, both mid-range drivers and both tweeters havethe same equalization (or substantially the same equalization). That is,they are both sent the same frequencies, but from different channels ofaudio. Audio from Internet radio stations, online music and videoservices, downloaded music, analog audio inputs, television, DVD, and soon, can be played from the PLAY:5.

IV. Controller

Referring now to FIG. 5, there is shown an example block diagram forcontroller 500, which can correspond to the controlling device 130 inFIG. 1. Controller 500 can be used to facilitate the control ofmulti-media applications, automation and others in a system. Inparticular, the controller 500 may be configured to facilitate aselection of a plurality of audio sources available on the network andenable control of one or more zone players (e.g., the zone players102-124 in FIG. 1) through a wireless or wired network interface 508.According to one embodiment, the wireless communications is based on anindustry standard (e.g., infrared, radio, wireless standard includingIEEE 802.11a, 802.11b 802.11g, 802.11n, or 802.15, and so on). Further,when a particular audio is being accessed via the controller 500 orbeing played via a zone player, a picture (e.g., album art) or any otherdata, associated with the audio and/or audio source can be transmittedfrom a zone player or other electronic device to controller 500 fordisplay.

Controller 500 is provided with a screen 502 and an input interface 514that allows a user to interact with the controller 500, for example, tonavigate a playlist of many multimedia items and to control operationsof one or more zone players. The screen 502 on the controller 500 can bean LCD screen, for example. The screen 500 communicates with and iscommanded by a screen driver 504 that is controlled by a microcontroller(e.g., a processor) 506. The memory 510 can be loaded with one or moreapplication modules 512 that can be executed by the microcontroller 506with or without a user input via the user interface 514 to achievecertain tasks. In some embodiments, an application module 512 isconfigured to facilitate grouping a number of selected zone players intoa zone group and synchronizing the zone players for audio play back. Insome embodiments, an application module 512 is configured to control theaudio sounds (e.g., volume) of the zone players in a zone group. Inoperation, when the microcontroller 506 executes one or more of theapplication modules 512, the screen driver 504 generates control signalsto drive the screen 502 to display an application specific userinterface accordingly.

The controller 500 includes a network interface 508 that facilitateswired or wireless communication with a zone player. In some embodiments,the commands such as volume control and audio playback synchronizationare sent via the network interface 508. In some embodiments, a savedzone group configuration is transmitted between a zone player and acontroller via the network interface 508. The controller 500 can controlone or more zone players, such as 102-124 of FIG. 1. There can be morethan one controller for a particular system, and each controller mayshare common information with another controller, or retrieve the commoninformation from a zone player, if such a zone player storesconfiguration data (e.g., such as state information). Further, acontroller can be integrated into a zone player.

It should be noted that other network-enabled devices such as anIPHONE®, IPAD® or any other smart phone or network-enabled device (e.g.,a networked computer such as a PC or MAC®) can also be used as acontroller to interact or control zone players in a particularenvironment. In some embodiments, a software application or upgrade canbe downloaded onto a network-enabled device to perform the functionsdescribed herein.

In certain embodiments, a user can create a group or collection of zonesreferred to as a bonded zone including at least two zone players fromthe controller 500. The zone players in the bonded zone can play audioin a synchronized fashion, such that all of the zone players in thegroup play back an identical audio source or a list of identical audiosources in a synchronized manner such that no (or substantially no)audible delays or hiccups are to be heard. Similarly, in someembodiments, when a user increases the audio volume of the group fromthe controller 500, the signals or data of increasing the audio volumefor the group are sent to one of the zone players and causes other zoneplayers in the group to be increased together in volume.

A user via the controller 500 can group zone players into a zone groupby activating a “Link Zones” or “Add Zone” soft button, or de-grouping azone group by activating an “Unlink Zones” or “Drop Zone” button. Forexample, one mechanism for ‘joining’ zone players together for audioplay back is to link a number of zone players together to form a group.To link a number of zone players together, a user can manually link eachzone player or room one after the other. For example, assume that thereis a multi-zone system that includes the following zones: Bathroom,Bedroom, Den, Dining Room, Family Room, and Foyer.

In certain embodiments, a user can link any number of the zone players(e.g., six zone players available in the example above), for example, bystarting with a single zone and then manually linking each zone to thatzone.

In certain embodiments, a set of zones can be dynamically linkedtogether using a command to create a zone scene or theme (subsequent tofirst creating the zone scene). For instance, a “Morning” zone scenecommand can link the Bedroom, Office, and Kitchen zones together in oneaction. Without this single command, the user would manually andindividually link each zone. The single command may include a mouseclick, a double mouse click, a button press, a gesture, or some otherprogrammed action. Other kinds of zone scenes can be programmed.

In certain embodiments, a zone scene can be triggered based on time(e.g., an alarm clock function). For instance, a zone scene can be setto apply at 8:00 am. The system can link appropriate zonesautomatically, set specific music to play, and then stop the music aftera defined duration. Although any particular zone can be triggered to an“On” or “Off” state based on time, for example, a zone scene enables anyzone(s) linked to the scene to play a predefined audio (e.g., afavorable song, a predefined playlist) at a specific time and/or for aspecific duration. If, for any reason, the scheduled music failed to beplayed (e.g., an empty playlist, no connection to a share, failedUniversal Plug and Play (UPnP), no Internet connection for an InternetRadio station, and so on), a backup buzzer can be programmed to sound.The buzzer can include a sound file that is stored in a zone player, forexample.

V. Example Configuration Systems and Methods

In an example system such as the ones shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, wheremultiple users can listen to the same audio content through one or morezone players such as those shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the ability toprovide crowd-sourced playlists and/or facilitate guest access to musicservices may be valuable.

An example system is shown in FIG. 6, whereby a zone group 600 includestwo zones, a Dining Room zone 610 and a Living Room zone 620, in whichmultiple users, via multiple controllers 630-633, can control the audiothat is played in the zone group 600 via a plurality of playback devices640-642 (e.g., a plurality of zone players and/or other media playbackdevices such as shown and described in FIGS. 1-4). As shown in theexample of FIG. 6, a media playback system can be configured to acceptcontrol and/or other input from multiple controllers 630-633, such as acontroller 500, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer,and/or other controlling device. Control, however, may be limited orotherwise restricted according to system permissions, preferences, etc.,set by default, by owner, and so on.

In certain embodiments, a party playlist mode enables users with a phoneor other controller (e.g., other device running a controller softwareapplication, etc.) that has access to the playback network to controlmusic playback. In some embodiments, playback control includes addingcontent to a playback system, such as adding content to a playback queue(e.g., party playlist). In other embodiments, playback control includesmoderation of content playback, such as moderating the content added tothe party playlist. In some embodiments, the party playlist mode canfacilitate moderation of content playback to users with a phone or othercontroller that has access to the playback network. In some embodiments,moderation of content playback can start with a single moderator andevolve to multiple moderators as time evolves (e.g., as the party goeson), for example. In one example embodiment, people with access to theplayback network can be notified when new tracks are added and be askedto vote regarding addition of the track to the playlist. In anotherexample embodiment, the order or timing of the newly added track in theplaylist can be voted on as well by people with access to the playbacknetwork.

In certain embodiments, playlist contributors are identified with thetracks they add and the identification of the contributors is sharedwith everyone to view. In this way, for example, listeners can know whoadded which song or track to the party playlist. In one exampleembodiment, the playlist contributor is not identified until theircontribution has been accepted into the party playlist.

Certain embodiments provide guest access to allow participants in theplayback system to bring their own content to the system on a temporarybasis. For example, people can provide access to their music serviceaccounts, the content on their mobile phones, their content stored inthe cloud, and so on, for a temporary basis.

In certain embodiments, duplicate tracks or songs being added to theparty playlist can be identified and rejected. For example, multipleusers may simultaneously (or substantially simultaneously) add the samesong or track to the playlist. To avoid multiple occurrences of the samesong or track, the system can automatically reject duplicates.

Certain embodiments provide limited user access to control musicplayback in a shared environment. In some embodiments limited useraccess may apply restrictions on an entire media playback system, asingle listening zone, and/or a listening zone group. In some exampleembodiments, limited user access may include restricting playback incertain specified listening zones and/or zone groups. In another exampleembodiment, limited user access may include restricting playback for afixed time interval, during a particular time-of-day, and/or on arecurring basis.

In an example embodiment, limited user access includes a party playlistthat gives limited access to play control of a particular listening zoneand/or group of zones. For example, the party playlist may limit usersto only adding songs or tracks to the playlist, whereas otherfunctionality in the listening zone or zone group may be disabled. Inanother example, the party playlist may allow users to collectivelydecide (e.g., vote) if a new song or track should be added to theplaylist, for example. In another example, the party playlist may alsolimit system configuration functionality, such as the zone groupingconfiguration, the music equalization parameters, etc. In some exampleembodiments, the party playlist may only be in effect for a fixed timeduration, and not require explicit disabling operation.

In an example embodiment, limited user access may be applied based onauthentication of the user. For example, limited user access may beapplied based on authentication of a controlling device which mayinclude registration of the controlling device and its associatedidentifier. In another example, authentication may include allcontroller devices used in the media playback system over a defined timeinterval (e.g., a previous twenty-four (24) hours).

Certain embodiments provide shared music access for a limited timeduration in a group listening environment. Shared music may be a libraryof tracks or a playlist on a physical device that is accessed wirelesslyby the media playback system, for example. Shared music may be asubscription service accessed independently over the Internet and/orother network, for example (e.g., a cloud-based storage, music streamingservice, etc.). Subscription service credentials may be passed directlyto a playback system device, for example. Subscription service may beusername/password or token, for example.

While illustrative examples provided below reference music or audio ascontent provided, video, images and/or other multimedia content may beprovided in addition or instead.

Crowd-Sourced Playlist

In some embodiments, one or more users can create a multimedia playlist.For example, a ‘party playlist’ mode is provided to allow multiple usersto add tracks to a queue for playback via a media playback system.

A media playback system can be put into party playlist mode by anauthenticated user. In an example, the user is to “sign in” such as byentering a username, a password, or a username/password combination tobe authenticated. In another example, the user may be authenticated byidentifying a device used to control the system (e.g., the device may beidentified by a unique identifier (ID) such as a Media Access Control(MAC) address that has been registered in the playback system). Forexample, a SONOS™ controller may be considered such a device, or adevice with a SONOS™ controller application may be registered as such adevice. In another example, “Jonathan's IPHONE™” may be considered sucha device if the target playback system is Jonathan's SONOS™ system. Inyet another example, devices that have been used with respect to themedia playback system within a certain time period (e.g., in atwenty-four (24)-hour period) may be considered registered.Alternatively, the playback system may be put into party playlist modeby anyone with access to the playback system.

The party playlist mode may be set to last for a fixed duration of time(e.g., four (4) hours), for example. The party playlist mode may be setto end at a specific time of day (e.g., 1 am), for example. The partyplaylist mode may last indefinitely until a user manually exits themode, for example. In an embodiment, a password is generated when theplayback system is put in party playlist mode and is used to exit partyplaylist mode. In another embodiment, no authentication is required totake the system out of party playlist mode.

Party playlist mode may apply to a single zone or zone grouping,multiple zones or zone groupings, or the entire media playback system,for example.

Once the system is put into party playlist mode, in some embodiments,users can only add music to the listening queue. Deleting tracks,changing the play mode (e.g., shuffle, repeat, etc.), or changing thesystem settings (e.g., zone group configuration, music equalizationparameters, etc.) is not allowed. In some embodiments, some or all ofthe following rules or limitations are applied: an ability to modifycontent may be limited, an ability to affect order may be limited, anability to adjust system configuration may be limited, and so on. Forexample, rules and/or other access permissions may limit whether anyonecan add songs to the party playlist, no one can remove songs from theparty playlist, only one song may be added at a time (rather than addingan entire album or set of content in a single action), etc. Artistrepetition may be avoided by limiting a number of songs in the queue bythe same artist, for example. Songs in the queue may be played randomlyand/or in a predefined order, for example. In certain examples, once asong is played, the song is removed from the queue. In certain examples,no user can switch sources or change a zone grouping in party playlistmode. In other examples, certain users may be able to switch sources orchange a zone grouping in party playlist mode.

A visual history of recently played tracks can be accessed and shown tousers via a control device, for example. In certain embodiments, agraphical “Jukebox” screen can be shown on the control device.

In an embodiment, a method is used to determine if a new track should beadded to the playlist. In an embodiment, all tracks are added to theplaylist in an unrestricted fashion. In another embodiment, the playlistis moderated by an “owner” of the media playback system. In anotherembodiment, the playlist is moderated by the crowd or collection ofusers. For example, when a user attempts to add a track to the playlist,notification is sent to users in the crowd. Notification can be in theform of an application-based notification (e.g., a notification messagewithin a Sonos application), a text message, an instant message, or someother messaging scheme. Any number of users can be selected toparticipate in the moderation, and the user selection may be at randomwhen a subset of the crowd is selected. Once notification is sent to theusers to vote, they are given a fixed time duration (e.g., two (2)minutes) to vote on adding the track to the listening queue. The systemcan use a majority-rule to determine if the track is added or not. Incertain embodiments, certain role(s) (e.g., a disc jockey (DJ), host,organizer, etc.) may have discretion or take priority to add or approveaddition of a track to the party playlist, for example.

In an example in which duplicate songs are not allowed, multiple usersmay try to add the same track or song to the queue. In an embodiment,duplicate tracks are identified by comparing the source location andtrack identifiers. In another embodiment, duplicate tracks areidentified by comparing the metadata (e.g., artist, track name, lengthof track, etc.) between the tracks. In yet another embodiment, duplicatetracks are identified by comparing the musical composition of bothtracks. The comparison may be done directly in the system or via aservice hosted locally or in the Internet “cloud”, for example.

In an embodiment, the user or users that add a track to the queue areidentified for others to see. In an embodiment, the user or users thatadd the track are identified in the queue alongside the track name. Inanother embodiment, the user or users that add the track are identifiedby drilling down (e.g., double-click, touch, hover over, etc.) on thetrack name.

In an embodiment, authentication mechanisms as described above may beused to identify the user or users that added the track. In anotherembodiment, the user may be asked to enter a name along with the trackto be added.

In an embodiment, the user who added the track to the playlist isnotified if the track has been successfully added or rejected from thelistening queue.

Guest Access

In an example media playback system, music that is added to the partyplaylist can come from many different sources. In an embodiment, musiccan be selected from sources already associated with the playbacksystem. Already-associated sources may include an indexed music librarythat is on a Local Area Network (e.g., music stored on a PC or MAC™computer, a network attached storage device, a docked IPOD™ or IPHONE™,or another wired or wireless device that has been indexed as part of theplayback system), an indexed music library that is stored in the “cloud”over the Internet (e.g., a cloud-based music storage such as AppleICLOUD™ or Amazon Cloud Player, etc.), or an Internet music service thatprovides streaming content over the Internet (e.g., PANDORA™, RHAPSODY™,SPOTIFY™, etc.). In another embodiment, the music can be played to themedia playback system (e.g., a SONOS™ system) from a third partysoftware application such as SPOTIFY™ or FACEBOOK™. In anotherembodiment, the music can be played directly from the device on whichthe content resides (e.g., music stored on an IPHONE™, IPAD™, IPOD™, orANDROID™ device).

In another embodiment, a ‘guest pass’ mode allows users to share theirmusic services with other users in the crowd on a temporary basis. Forexample, users may want to share their SPOTIFY™ account temporarily ifthe playback system does not have a SPOTIFY™ account already associatedwith the system. In another example, users wanting to share a personalplaylist may want to share their SPOTIFY™ account temporarily even ifthe system already has a SPOTIFY™ account associated with it. In anembodiment, guest access requires the guest to be linked to the playbacksystem. In an embodiment, the guest is linked to the playback systemusing a configuration sequence including a special button press on asystem device. When the guest is linked to the playback system as aguest, user credentials (e.g., username/password, token, etc.) aretransferred to the playback system from the user in a secure fashion.The user credentials are used to register the playback system with amusic service, for example. In an embodiment, the user credentials arepassed directly to a media playback system device using wired orwireless communication. In another embodiment, the user credentials aretransmitted to a media playback system device from a mobile device byfirst connecting through the mobile network (e.g., a 3G or 4G network)and then connecting to the playback system through an Internet or othernetwork connection. Guest access may be set to last for a fixed durationof time (e.g., four (4) hours). Guest access may be set to end at aspecific time of day (e.g., 1 am). Guest access may last as long as theuser is connected to the network, or it may last indefinitely until auser manually exits the mode. In an embodiment, when guest access isterminated, the user credentials are purged from the system.

In certain embodiments, guest credentials (e.g., password) shall not beretrievable from the system. An owner of the account, however, may allowa ‘user id’ to be displayed by the system on controllers in certaincircumstances (e.g., associated with a song playing from their account,similar to above user attribution). In an example, guest access may beterminated via a refutation mechanism that does not require the gueststill be attached to the hosting system or on the local network. Thiscould be via an Internet online multimedia authorization protocol (OMAP)or similar protocol using an Internet connection (including a mobileconnection), for example.

Restricted Mode

In some embodiments, the example media playback system includes one ormore restrictions that limit access to control music playback. Certainembodiments include a ‘restricted’ mode that limits users to certainfunctionality. In the example playback system described and disclosedabove, the party playlist mode may limit user access to adding tracks toa listening queue, for example. In another example system, users arelimited as to a time of day at which they can control the playback ofmusic. In another example system, users are limited as to the zones orzone groups that they can control. For example, in a household withyoung children, parents may wish to limit their children to playbackcontrol only in the living room and the children's bedroom(s). Inanother example, parents may want to limit their children to playbackcontrol only during the hours of 9 am to 7 pm. In another example,parents may want to do both: limit their children to playback controlonly during the hours of 9 am to 7 pm and also only in the living roomand child bedroom(s). In another example system, users are limited tothe type of content that they can play. In some embodiments, the contentis limited by the playback system using an “explicit” tag embedded in adigital music file. In another embodiment, the content is limited by thesystem to the location of the source or the streaming service.

In certain embodiments, a user may be limited in a number of tracks thatthe user can add to the queue. For example, the host can allot or creditthe user with a number of tracks to be added, such as by selecting theuser's controller from a list of linked controllers, by providing theuser with a token or activation code, and so on. Each song added by theuser to the party playlist is deducted from the user's allotment orcredit, for example. In an embodiment, the host is a businessestablishment, and the user is a customer of that establishment. Thecustomer can influence the playlist at the establishment as they wouldwith a traditional jukebox, for example.

Example Party Playlist Methods

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram of an example method 700 to implementa party playlist mode in a media playback system. At block 710, aplayback or “Now Playing” screen is displayed. For example, a listing ofa playlist and currently playing song can be displayed via a controller,such as controller 500 (e.g., a controller application running on anIPHONE™, ANDROID™, or IPAD™).

At block 720, a party playlist mode is selected. The mode may bemanually selected by a user or selected according to a schedule and/orother automated trigger. For example, the user may select an option viaa controller to trigger entry into the party playlist mode. In anotherexample, a user may schedule the party playlist mode to begin at acertain time on a certain day for a party. At block 730, a user isauthenticated to determine authorization of that user to enter the partyplaylist mode. For example, the user is authenticated based on ausername and password, token, password alone, biometric identification,and so on. In another example, the user is authenticated based on theidentification of the controller that is being used.

At block 740, the media playback system enters party playlist mode. Inparty playlist mode, user(s) (e.g., all users within range (e.g., at aparty), authorized users, etc.) can add content to the party playlistfor playback via a local playback system (e.g., a household SONOS™system local to the party). In certain embodiments, in party playlistmode, user(s) can specify priority/order of content. In certainembodiments, in party playlist mode, user(s) can specify a zone(re)configuration, for example. In certain embodiments, in partyplaylist mode, user(s) can specify volume and/or other parameters (e.g.,in general and/or associated with their particular added track(s)). Incertain embodiments, changes made by a user may be subject to approvaland/or override (e.g., by a host/owner/administrator, by a vote ofparticipants, etc.).

In certain embodiments, a remote user can add content to the playlistqueue. For example, a party host can give a remote user access to modifythe party playlist (e.g., the host can message her old college roommateto ask about the song they loved to dance to in college and ask her oldroommate to remotely add the song from her collection to the host'splaylist, etc.). Remote adding of content to the party playlist can befacilitated by providing a content identifier (e.g., a song name), acopy of the content, etc.

At block 750, an exit from party playlist mode is selected. The mode maybe may be manually selected by a user or selected according to aschedule and/or other automated trigger. For example, the user mayselect an option via a controller to trigger exit from the partyplaylist mode. In another example, a user may schedule the partyplaylist mode to end at a certain time on a certain day. At block 760, auser is authenticated to determine authorization of that user to exitthe party playlist mode. For example, the user is authenticated based ona username and password, token, password alone, biometricidentification, and so on. In another example, the user is authenticatedbased on the identification of the controller that is being used. Oncethe playback system has exited the party playlist mode, normal operationof the playback system can resume.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flow diagram of an example method 800 to facilitateaddition of content to a party playlist. At block 810, the localplayback system waits for a user to add content to the party playlist.For example, a guest at a party may be given access to modify theplaylist or queue of content for playback via the host's local playbacksystem (e.g., household playback system, nightclub playback system,business playback system, etc.). Guest user access can be validatedand/or otherwise authenticated to determine authorization to access theparty playlist, for example.

At block 820, content is added by the user to the party playlist. Forexample, the user utilizes a controller, such as controller 500 (e.g., acontroller application running on a smartphone or tablet computer), tobrowse/search, select, and add content to the party playlist. In certainembodiments, the user is given access (perhaps limited) to the host'scontent for addition to the playlist. In certain embodiments, the useris able to access his or her own content for referral and/or addition tothe playlist. In certain embodiments, the user is able to access one ormore streaming and/or cloud-based content services to route content tothe party playlist.

At block 830, participating users are identified. For example, if aplurality of people attending a party has access to the party playlistvia one or more controllers, the plurality of people are identified asparticipating users. Participating users may be identified based oncontroller, user authentication, user registration, activity withrespect to the playlist or other part of the local playback system, etc.

At block 840, based on criteria the host provides (e.g., a number ofparticipating (e.g., controlling) users are present above a threshold),then a message is sent to the users to vote. For example, the host canset a threshold above which users can vote on addition and/or otheradjustment of content to the party playlist. The number of participatingusers can be set by default, for example. The number of users may bemore than one, for example.

At block 850, the voting users determine if the content is added to theparty playlist. For example, each eligible voting user receives amessage and request to vote via a controller (e.g., a smartphone ortablet controller application, etc.) associated with that user. Incertain embodiments, a voting scheme can be configured, such as a simplemajority and/or other voting scheme. In certain embodiments, amoderator, such as a host or disc jockey, can override a user vote.

At block 860, if user voting is not employed, if too few votes are cast,or if the host elects for other reason(s), a moderator (e.g., the host)decides whether the content is to be added to the party playlist. Forexample, if only one participating user is present and/or the minimumnumber set in the system is not satisfied, then the moderator/hostarbitrates the addition of content to the party playlist. As anotherexample, the moderator/host may override or veto the vote ofparticipating users.

At block 870, the requesting user is notified of the decision regardingthe content to be added. Such notification may include comments and/oradditional information including, for example, the vote tally, moderatorcomments, etc. For example, a user attempting to add a song to the partyplaylist is sent a message notifying him/her regarding whether the songwas successfully added or rejected with respect to the party playlist.

The playback system then resumes waiting, in party playlist mode, for auser to request content to be added to the party playlist. Although theexample of FIG. 8 has been described with respect to content (e.g.,audio, video, and/or other media content), it is understood that theexample method 800 can be executed with respect to zone groupconfiguration, volume and/or other parameter settings, and so on for thelocal playback system in party mode.

FIGS. 9-15 illustrate an example sequence of user interfacesfacilitating content selection, playback and configuration in a partyplaylist mode. As shown in the example of FIG. 9, a user interface 900includes a list or other set of audio tracks available to be selectedfor a playlist in a party playlist mode, for example. In FIG. 9, aplayback queue can be found at 902. In this example, the playback queue902 corresponds to the “Office” zone 906. Also in FIG. 9, a playindicator 904 appears to the left of the item currently playing in theplayback queue (e.g., currently a pause symbol is shown that indicatesthe user can pause the play by selecting the symbol). When the currentitem ends, the next item in the queue starts to play, and play continuesthrough the list until the queue is completed or some other action like“repeat” is selected.

In FIG. 10, a user is asked to create a password 1010 when starting aparty playlist mode. For example, a host may be asked to establish apassword 1010 and/or other identifier that a participating user is toprovide in order to add content to the playlist. In certain embodiments,a password and/or other authorization may be required to enter and/or toexit party playlist mode. In certain embodiments, a host may have amoderator password separate from a participating user password, whereeach password provides a differing level of access to affect contentand/or behavior of the media playback system, for example. As shown inthe example of FIG. 11, in order to exit party playlist mode, the user(e.g., the host) is to enter a password 1100 and/or other identificationvia the interface.

FIG. 12 shows an example of a restricted set of functions 1210 madeavailable to a participating user in party playlist mode. In the exampleof FIG. 12, a user is provided with options 1210 to add selected content(e.g., track, album, etc.) to a playback queue or retrieve informationregarding selected content (e.g., retrieve artist, album, date, etc.,for a selected song). FIG. 13 shows another example of commands 1310made available to a participating user who is requesting that content beadded to a party playlist. Rather than playing or adding radio stations,in the example of FIG. 13, a user is only able to add more music, deletea track he/she added from the playlist, rename, etc. As shown in theexample of FIG. 14, a party playlist queue can be displayed to aparticipating user, along with an indication 1410 that the selected zonegroup is in party playlist or “Jukebox” mode. In the example of FIG. 14,a user can add single songs that are to be played randomly from theparty playlist. In FIG. 15, once party playlist mode has been exited,the example interface provides a notification 1510 that the partyplaylist mode is now off.

VI. Conclusion

As discussed above, systems and methods are provided to offer arestricted playback mode (e.g., a party playlist mode) to allow one ormore participating users to access a media playback system and interactwith a reduced subset of functions in that system (e.g., add content toa party playlist, vote on content, etc.). The embodiments describedherein may be further useful by systems in which a limited-time,group-based access to a subset of available functionality is required orpreferred.

Thus certain embodiments provide a method including providing, via alocal media playback system, a restricted playback mode open to aplurality of participating users, the restricted playback mode providinga subset of playback functions from the local media playback system tothe participating users, the subset including addition of content to aplaylist for playback via the local media playback system. The examplemethod includes facilitating addition of content to the playlist by atleast one participating user. The example method includes facilitatingplayback of content from the playlist in the restricted playback mode.

Certain embodiments provide a tangible computer readable storage mediumincluding instructions which, when executed by a processor, are toimplement at least a method. The example method includes providing, viaa local media playback system, a restricted playback mode open to aplurality of participating users, the restricted playback mode providinga subset of playback functions from the local media playback system tothe participating users, the subset including addition of content to aplaylist for playback via the local media playback system. The examplemethod includes facilitating addition of content to the playlist by atleast one participating user. The example method includes facilitatingplayback of content from the playlist in the restricted playback mode.

Certain embodiments provide a media playback system including one ormore playback devices, each playback device including a processor, amemory and a speaker to output audio content provided to the playbackdevice. The example system includes one or more controllers, eachcontroller to facilitate review and addition of audio content forplayback via the one or more playback devices. In the example system, atleast one controller is to configure the media playback system in arestricted playback mode open to a plurality of participating users, therestricted playback mode to provide a subset of playback functions fromthe media playback system to the participating users, the subsetincluding addition of content to a playlist for playback via the mediaplayback system, the controller to facilitate addition of content to theplaylist by at least one participating user and facilitate playback ofcontent from the playlist in the restricted playback mode.

The description discloses various example systems, methods, apparatus,and articles of manufacture including, among other components, firmwareand/or software executed on hardware. However, such examples are merelyillustrative and should not be considered as limiting. For example, itis contemplated that any or all of these firmware, hardware, and/orsoftware components can be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusivelyin software, exclusively in firmware, or in any combination of hardware,software, and/or firmware. Accordingly, while the following describesexample systems, methods, apparatus, and/or articles of manufacture, theexamples provided are not the only way(s) to implement such systems,methods, apparatus, and/or articles of manufacture.

Additionally, reference herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of theinvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible mediumsuch as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on, storing the softwareand/or firmware.

We claim:
 1. A media playback system comprising: a first zone comprisingone or more first playback devices; a second zone comprising one or moresecond playback devices; a third zone comprising one or more thirdplayback devices; one or more processors; and tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media having stored therein instructions executable bythe one or more processors to cause the media playback system to performoperations comprising: receiving, via a network interface from a hostcontrol device, instructions to configure the media playback system intoan event mode, the instructions indicating a zone group configurationfor the event mode, the zone group configuration including the firstzone and the second zone, wherein the host control device is grantedfull access to the media playback system; in response to the receivedinstructions to configure the media playback system into event mode,joining the first zone and the second zone into the zone groupconfiguration for the event mode, wherein the first zone and the secondzone are configured to play back a queue in synchrony, and wherein thequeue is stored in data storage of at least one of the one or more firstplayback devices and the one or more second playback devices, whereinthe zone group configuration excludes the third zone; while in the eventmode: connecting one or more guest control devices to the media playbacksystem, wherein the one or more guest control devices are grantedlimited access to the media playback system; causing display of thequeue in a user interface on the host control device and in respectiveuser interfaces on the one or more guest control devices, whereincausing display of the queue comprising sending one or more statevariables indicating media items queued in the queue to the host controldevice and the one or more guest control devices; according to the fullaccess granted to the host control device, causing display of a controlinterface that includes (a) a full set of playback controls for the zonegroup configuration in the user interface on the host control device,the full set of playback controls comprising controls to: (i) add mediaitems to the queue, (ii) delete media items from the queue, and (iii)re-order media items within the queue (b) a full set of controls for thethird zone; and according to the limited access granted to the one ormore guest control devices, causing display of a control interface thatincludes a limited set of playback controls for only the zone groupconfiguration in the respective user interfaces on the one or more guestcontrol devices, the limited set of playback controls comprisingcontrols to add media items to the queue and excluding controls to: (i)delete media items from the queue, and (ii) re-order media items withinthe queue.
 2. The media playback system of claim 1, wherein causingdisplay of the full set of playback controls comprises sending, via thenetwork interface to the host control device, one or more statevariables indicating that the host control device is granted full accessto the media playback system, and wherein causing display of the limitedset of playback controls comprises sending, via the network interface tothe one or more guest control devices, one or more state variablesindicating that the one or more guest control devices are grantedlimited access to the media playback system.
 3. The media playbacksystem of claim 1, wherein the instructions to place the media playbacksystem in event mode include a time and date for an event; and whereinjoining the first zone and the second zone into the zone groupconfiguration for the event mode comprises joining, in response to thereceived instructions, the first zone and the second zone into the zonegroup configuration at the time and date for the event.
 4. The mediaplayback system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:receiving, via the network interface from the host control device,instructions to configure the media playback system out of the eventmode; and in response to the received instructions to configure themedia playback system out of the event mode: (i) removing the first zoneand the second zone from the zone group configuration for the event modeand (ii) disconnecting the one or more guest control devices from themedia playback system.
 5. The media playback system of claim 1, whereinthe operations further comprise: receiving, via the network interfacefrom a given guest control device, one or more requests to add a mediaitem to the queue; determining that the given guest control device hasrequested to add at least a threshold number of media items to thequeue; and according to the limited access and in response todetermining that the given guest control device has requested to add atleast the threshold number of media items to the queue, preventing thegiven guest control device from adding additional media items to thequeue.
 6. The media playback system of claim 1, wherein the operationsfurther comprise: causing display of the one or more guest controldevices in the user interface on the host control device and in therespective user interfaces on the one or more guest control devices. 7.The media playback system of claim 1, wherein a given first playbackdevice comprises the network interface and the one or more processors.8. The media playback system of claim 1, wherein the one or moreprocessors are distributed across two or more of the one or more firstplayback devices and the one or more second playback devices.
 9. Amethod comprising: receiving, via a network interface of a mediaplayback system from a host control device, instructions to configurethe media playback system into an event mode, the instructionsindicating a zone group configuration for the event mode, the zone groupconfiguration including a first zone and a second zone, wherein the hostcontrol device is granted full access to the media playback system, andwherein the first zone comprises one or more first playback devices andthe second zone comprises one or more second playback devices; inresponse to the received instructions to configure the media playbacksystem into event mode, joining, via the media playback system, thefirst zone and the second zone into the zone group configuration for theevent mode, wherein the first zone and the second zone are configured toplay back a queue in synchrony, wherein the queue is stored in datastorage of at least one of the one or more first playback devices andthe one or more second playback devices; while in the event mode:connecting, via the media playback system, one or more guest controldevices to the media playback system, wherein the one or more guestcontrol devices are granted limited access to the media playback system;causing, via the media playback system, display of the queue in a userinterface on the host control device and in respective user interfaceson the one or more guest control devices, wherein causing display of thequeue comprising sending one or more state variables indicating mediaitems queued in the queue to the host control device and the one or moreguest control devices; according to the full access granted to the hostcontrol device, causing, via the media playback system, display of acontrol interface that includes (a) a full set of playback controls forthe zone group configuration in the user interface on the host controldevice, the full set of playback controls comprising controls to: (i)add media items to the queue, (ii) delete media items from the queue,and (iii) re-order media items within the queue (b) a full set ofcontrols for a third zone; and according to the limited access grantedto the one or more guest control devices, causing, via the mediaplayback system, display of a control interface that includes a limitedset of playback controls for only the zone group configuration in therespective user interfaces on the one or more guest control devices, thelimited set of playback controls comprising controls to add media itemsto the queue and excluding controls to: (i) delete media items from thequeue, and (ii) re-order media items within the queue.
 10. The method ofclaim 9, wherein causing display of the full set of playback controlscomprises sending, via the network interface to the host control device,one or more state variables indicating that the host control device isgranted full access to the media playback system, and wherein causingdisplay of the limited set of playback controls comprises sending, viathe network interface to the one or more guest control devices, one ormore state variables indicating that the one or more guest controldevices are granted limited access to the media playback system.
 11. Themethod of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises: receiving, viathe network interface from the host control device, instructions toconfigure the media playback system out of the event mode; and inresponse to the received instructions to configure the media playbacksystem out of the event mode: (i) removing the first zone and the secondzone from the zone group configuration for the event mode and (ii)disconnecting the one or more guest control devices from the mediaplayback system.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the method furthercomprises: receiving, via the network interface from a given guestcontrol device, one or more requests to add a media item to the queue;determining that the given guest control device has requested to add atleast a threshold number of media items to the queue; and according tothe limited access and in response to determining that the given guestcontrol device has requested to add at least the threshold number ofmedia items to the queue, preventing the given guest control device fromadding additional media items to the queue.
 13. A tangiblenon-transitory computer readable storage medium including instructionswhich, when executed by one or more processors of a media playbacksystem, implement a method comprising: receiving, via a networkinterface of from a host control device, instructions to configure themedia playback system into an event mode, the instructions indicating azone group configuration for the event mode, the zone groupconfiguration including a first zone and a second zone, wherein the hostcontrol device is granted full access to the media playback system, andwherein the first zone comprises one or more first playback devices andthe second zone comprises one or more second playback devices; inresponse to the received instructions to configure the media playbacksystem into event mode, joining the first zone and the second zone intothe zone group configuration for the event mode, wherein the first zoneand the second zone are configured to play back a queue in synchrony,and wherein the queue is stored in data storage of at least one of theone or more first playback devices and the one or more second playbackdevices; while in the event mode: connecting one or more guest controldevices to the media playback system, wherein the one or more guestcontrol devices are granted limited access to the media playback system;causing display of the queue in a user interface on the host controldevice and in respective user interfaces on the one or more guestcontrol devices, wherein causing display of the queue comprising sendingone or more state variables indicating media items queued in the queueto the host control device and the one or more guest control devices;according to the full access granted to the host control device, causingdisplay of a control interface that includes (a) a full set of playbackcontrols for the zone group configuration in the user interface on thehost control device, the full set of playback controls comprisingcontrols to: (i) add media items to the queue, (ii) delete media itemsfrom the queue, and (iii) re-order media items within the queue (b) afull set of controls for a third zone; and according to the limitedaccess granted to the one or more guest control devices, causing displayof a control interface that includes a limited set of playback controlsfor only the zone group configuration in the respective user interfaceson the one or more guest control devices, the limited set of playbackcontrols comprising controls to add media items to the queue andexcluding controls to: (i) delete media items from the queue, and (ii)re-order media items within the queue.
 14. The tangible non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein causing display ofthe full set of playback controls comprises sending, via the networkinterface to the host control device, one or more state variablesindicating that the host control device is granted full access to themedia playback system, and wherein causing display of the limited set ofplayback controls comprises sending, via the network interface to theone or more guest control devices, one or more state variablesindicating that the one or more guest control devices are grantedlimited access to the media playback system.
 15. The tangiblenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein themethod further comprise: receiving, via the network interface from thehost control device, instructions to configure the media playback systemout of the event mode; and in response to the received instructions toconfigure the media playback system out of the event mode: (i) removingthe first zone and the second zone from the zone group configuration forthe event mode and (ii) disconnecting the one or more guest controldevices from the media playback system.
 16. The tangible non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the method furthercomprise: receiving, via the network interface from a given guestcontrol device, one or more requests to add a media item to the queue;determining that the given guest control device has requested to add atleast a threshold number of media items to the queue; and according tothe limited access and in response to determining that the given guestcontrol device has requested to add at least the threshold number ofmedia items to the queue, preventing the given guest control device fromadding additional media items to the queue.